17.05.2009.

Justice for Velež, Mostar

This letter is another in a series of attempts, our fans, that we turn attention to the problems of what has our lovely club Velež.
Since domestic football institutions are not doing anything to help us, moreover they making our life more miserable, we decided that this letter be sent to you, umbrella institutions Football UEFA and FIFA. We do not need any privileges from you, we wish only that your's influence can help Velež and football in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We will start with most current story and that is that until the end of rest of this championship is only two games left, unfortunately our Velež fights for survival and the only real danger is NK Orašje.
Nothing unusual would have been if this was not a ''private club'' of one of the main officials of the Football/Soccer Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iljo Dominković. All media is about the survival of NK Orašje in the most elite rank because the official concerned, which is a public secret, Iljo Dominković began negotiate to purchase points, fixing the remaining matches in which NK Orašje to be the winner and ensure survival of his own team. We beg you for a little intensive monitor of the situation in our league championship to the end.
As a second, longer lasting problem lead us to our stadium. As you all know FK Velež is, until the last minute played at the stadium under Bijeli Brijeg in Mostar when War (1992 – 1995) begun in our City. Our team FK Velež was expelled from our stadium Bijeli Brijeg and now plays on the lawn near Mostar, which does not provide normal conditions for playing, on the meadow where visiting fans can not get there if the game a little at risk due to the condition of present situations. We do not have appropriate lighting for night games because that is a luxury, we do not remember when we played a home game under the floodlights, which is tearfuly sad. Several years ago, you (UEFA) have donated money to build a stadium as part of the project “Goal” and you are probably happy because you helped develop soccer in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but the public remained in shock when they learned that the money you donated was gone to build a private stadium under ownership of Mr. Iljo Dominković. That money went to build stadiums NK Orašje, a club that has emerged, 1996, the club which comes from the place where he lives, where barely 20 000 people live although it is a fact for the municipality a place means there are less residents although behold all that aside, the biggest reason why is just NK Orašje received the donation is Iljo Dominković, one of the main leaders Football/Soccer Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the man who was born in Orašje.
Whatever your criteria was, the club that barely 10 years exist, the club that never achieved a noticeable result on any level, could not get the privilege to be honored with a modern stadium. Interesting is how a small place gets such a stadium with a capacity of 5500 fans. After construction, the stadium has never been filled to full capacity, even to the half was not amended, to be 2700 fans. We do not hate that club, we do not have anything against them, and we are glad that any sports collective in Bosnia and Herzegovina is progressing well as the NK Orašje, but it is funny that their club passed our club Velež. Our club Velež has always played outstanding roles in the former Yugoslavian Championships, which was sometimes considered as one of the stronger leagues in Europe, the club that played Quarterfinals UEFA Cup, the club that organized every year one of the strongest winter warm-up tournaments in Europe, the club who brought the aces as Meho Kodro (Barcelona, Real Sociedad), Hasan Salihamidžić (Hamburg, Bayern, Juventus), Sergej Barbarez (Hamburg, Bayer L.), Dušan Bajević, Enver Marić, Vahid Halilhodžić, Boro Primorac, Blaž Slišković and a lot of players who played outstanding roles in European football. Must say that Velež youth and school was one of the best in Yugoslavia, even Velež was once called Yugoslavian Ajax because it brought perhaps the largest number of football masters in Yugoslavia and on the Balkans.
But since we are left without the stadium, we are reduced to these low levels. Politics destroy us, we are the club for which were playing Serbs and Croats and Muslims, and the club that they like, Serbs and Croats and Muslims, and so therefore we can not succeed, because today, main conditions for development of the club in Bosnia and Herzegovina national prejudice that we rejected smoothly and declared as everyone’s club, regardless of nationality. Must to emphasize that in our championship, Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina, champions are determined by the national key and if you move little closer in issues you may notice that champions the principle of alternating the Serbian club, Croation club, Muslim club.
This season champion is HŠK Zrinjski, last year was FK Modriča, before that was FK Sarajevo. Which means that the champion of Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina and a Cup winner can not be the clubs with the same sign of nationality in same season.
Check!
We hereby send this mesage to you in need of assistance and to help us in order to get a normal stadium, where our Velež can play and where our children can continue legacy of our beloved club VELEŽ. By doing that it is the most important things for our progress and that Stadium which is our greatest problem. We still have problems but we can solve them alone, while this is the largest and undoubtedly we can not do this alone without your help. Our desire is to return to our old stadium under Bijeli Brijeg upon which this HŠK Zrinjski now plays, or to help us in building a new stadium in Mostar, which at the moment we as a club we can not afford without someone else helping. Our club VELEŽ deserves it, because it is not from yesterday, this club has a success, this club has a tradition, has fans, this club is loved.Our club played great in the role in the second world war, this club has had several heroes who fought against fascist. In this difficult time for our country, when hated is expressed on all sides, when criminals holds the fate of the state, when all human values lost their meaning, when the morale fell to a low level, we hope that the love of football can be strong enough to win over all the hardships and that your love for football can see this dream come true with your help.
We hope that this letter will reach you and you'll be willing to help us and our beloved club FK VELEŽ.
Best regards to all of you from Mostar!